As announced on August 1, 2024, (Please click here to read my general comment from an ETF perspective on the announcement of the merger) BNP Paribas finalized the acquisition of AXA Investment Managers on July 1, 2025, for an agreed price of €5.1 bn in cash. According to the press release by BNP Paribas, the merger of the two companies enables BNP Paribas to create a leading European asset management platform with more than €1.5 trillion in assets under management.
As Reuters reports, BNP Paribas bought AXA Investment Managers through its insurance business Cardif, in an attempt to minimize the effects from the deal on the bank’s capital. This is because BNP Paribas made use of a treatment known as the “Danish Compromise” – which allows lower capital requirements for banks that own insurance units.
With regard to ETFs, BNP Paribas claims that the merger will help it to position itself among the main providers of ETFs in Europe. That said, the combined assets under management of the two ETF promoters stood at €36.9 bn (BNP Paribas Easy ETF €33.8 bn and AXA Investment Managers €3.1 bn) at the end of May 2025. If the acquisition would have happened on May 31, 2025, the acquisition would not have changed the position of BNP Paribas Easy ETF on the league table of ETF promoters in Europe since the company would have still be the ninth largest ETF promoter in Europe after the merger. Nevertheless, the merger of the two ETF entities makes sense for BNP Paribas Easy ETF since there is only a small overlay in the product ranges, which means that BNP Paribas Easy ETF is instantly enhancing its product range.
Oops they (AXA) did it again
From my point of view, it is noteworthy (and a fun fact) that AXA IM sold its ETF business for the second time to BNP Paribas. AXA Investment Managers entered the European ETF industry under their ETF brand EasyETF in February 2002 and pooled forces in a joint venture with BNP Paribas in 2005. At the end of May 2009 AXA IM announced that it would hand its stake in the EasyETF joint venture and the operational management of its 22 ETFs to its partner BNP Paribas Asset Management.
This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute any investment advice.
The views expressed are the views of the author, not necessarily those of Lipper or LSEG.
